


Blossoming Love

by darthswift13



Category: Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Alternate Universe - Flower Shop, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Fluff, Rey and Ben are both bi and have dated other people in the past before meeting each other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-10
Updated: 2020-06-10
Packaged: 2021-03-04 02:27:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,775
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24636049
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darthswift13/pseuds/darthswift13
Summary: Rey works at a flower shop and Ben is the flower delivery person. Talking to him about flowers and gardening every morning quickly becomes the best part of her day.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo, Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 14
Kudos: 197
Collections: Galactic Idiots Collection, Queerly Beloved Reylo Fics





	Blossoming Love

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to the amazing[ Debbie](http://twitter.com/driversputa) for making the beautiful moodboard for this fic! And thank you to [Lena](http://twitter.com/bensoloswhore) for making the beautiful cover that I posted on Twitter!
> 
> And one last thank you goes to [Fran](http://twitter.com/galacticidiots) for giving me the ideas for what Rey and Ben's favorite flowers should be<3
> 
> I hope you enjoy this story, and please be sure to leave kudos and comments if you do!

The door to Maz’s Flower Shop jingles and Rey sits up suddenly, trying in vain to wipe away her tears. 

A tall young man with dark hair and pale skin steps through the doorway. 

“Hi, um— ” he stammers awkwardly, “I’m just here to pick up the flower deliveries — usually Rose is here and has them ready— is everything alright?” he adds, tilting his head slightly as his brows furrow in concern.

Rey sniffs.

“Oh, yeah, I’m brilliant, no worries,” Rey says flippantly with a broad, fake smile, but she can tell the man doesn’t believe her. “Rose and I switched shifts because she is going back to school and has classes in the mornings, so I’m on the morning shift from now on,” she adds by way of explanation. “So, um, right then, the flower deliveries,” she continues, nervously shuffling about, “ _Shit_ , where did I put the flower deliveries?” she mutters, looking around frantically. 

“I, um,” Ben interjects awkwardly, “I believe they’re lined up on the counter behind you.”

Rey flashes another fake smile.

“Right. Of course. I knew that. Anyway. I don’t know how this works, do I have to sign off on them or put them in the computer or something? Like I said, I’m new to this shift.”

“It looks like Rose took care of everything last night,” he says as he eyes the counter behind her.

Rey feels her chin quivering and she fights very hard not to let another tear escape from her eyes.

“Oh, okay, perfect,” she says, but her voice is quiet, and it cracks a little bit.

The man’s amber colored eyes are soft and gentle and full of concern, and she doesn’t like that he’s looking at her like that.

“Are you sure everything’s alright?” he asks. 

“I said I’m fine!” Rey snaps, and it comes out meaner than she intended. She sighs. “I’m sorry, that was rude. I just...have a lot on my mind,” she says finally. 

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“I don’t even _know_ you,” Rey retorts, her tone becoming sharp again. 

“Sorry, you’re right, I should’ve introduced myself. I’m Ben Solo,” he says, extending his hand for her to shake it. 

She hesitantly reaches out and takes his hand. It feels warm and almost comforting around hers, but she probably only feels that way because of how emotionally vulnerable she is right now.

“I’m Reyanna, but everyone calls me Rey,” Rey tells him, gesturing to her name tag. She smiles awkwardly and then averts her eyes as she pulls her arm away and tries to surreptitiously wipe away her tears with the back of her hand. “God, this is embarrassing,” she mutters.

“It’s okay,” Ben insists, “You can talk to me. If you want to.”

“Don’t you have to do the deliveries?” she asks a little too harshly.

“I’m not in any rush, I’m here a little earlier than usual today—traffic was unusually low,” he says with a shrug.

Rey sighs again.

“It’s dumb,” she mutters, her eyes darting to the floor. 

“I’m sure whatever it is, it isn’t dumb."

Rey takes a deep breath.

“Fine. I just—there was this girl I was dating and I was going to ask her to be my girlfriend and I got her this bouquet of Heliotrope flowers. They’ve always been one of my favorite flowers because they symbolize devotion or whatever and um...anyway,” she sighs, “To make a long story short...she ended up dumping me.”

Rey sniffs again, immediately regretting everything she just said. 

She looks up at Ben sheepishly.

“I’m so sorry,” Ben says softly, and there’s something about his tone that makes her feel like he really means it, like he’s not just reciting the words because it’s the sort of thing you say in these situations.

“It’s fine,” Rey mumbles.

“No, it’s not fine. That was really shitty of her. You were so thoughtful giving her that bouquet of flowers knowing the deeper meaning behind them, and she just _dumped_ you?”

Rey shrugs.

  
“It’s fine,” she mumbles again.

“Well, for what it’s worth, I hope someday you find a girl who will appreciate such thoughtful gestures.”

“Thanks,” Rey replies half-heartedly. “Doesn’t necessarily have to be a girl, by the way. I just want....someone who will stay for once,” she says quietly, her eyes fixed somewhere in the distance. “Anyway, like I said, I’m fine,” she says again, looking back up at Ben. “Really, it’s not a big deal. I’m used to people leaving. My parents. Girlfriends, boyfriends. Everyone always leaves. It’s fine. You should be getting the flower deliveries anyway,” she adds, turning and scooping up the pile of bouquets and handing them to him.

“Right. Thanks,” he replies, taking the bouquets. “Have a nice day, Rey. It was very nice to meet you.”

“It was nice to meet you, too.”

Ben smiles at her then. It occurs to her that he has a very nice smile. 

“I’ll see you tomorrow morning, then.”

“See you tomorrow morning.”

🌼🌼🌼

Rey is half asleep when she hears the door jingle the next morning. She’s still not used to the morning shift. She’s never been a morning person, so she doubts she’ll _ever_ get used to it. 

But there is something oddly comforting about seeing Ben again as he steps through the doorway that he is almost too tall for. Something about the way he smiles at her with that tenderness and warmth in his amber colored eyes that almost makes her feel like maybe having to wake up at 6 a.m. isn’t so terrible after all. 

Almost.

“How are you today? Are you feeling any better than yesterday?”

“I was fine yesterday and I’m fine today,” Rey mutters icily as she starts piling the bouquets from the back counter onto the main counter in front of her while shooting him an irritated glance.

”Okay, jeez,” Ben mumbles. “I was just trying to be nice. I — I just — I know what it’s like to be heartbroken. When my boyfriend Tai dumped me, I was a mess for weeks.”

“Well, Tallie wasn’t even my girlfriend yet, so it’s fine. I’m perfectly fine."

“Really?" Ben asks, unconvinced, "Because you’re crying again.”

“Ben Solo, I am _not_ crying,” she insists as tears fall down her face. She sniffs, and then sighs in defeat. Because she can't hide the fact that she's very obviously crying. It's not even really because of Tallie in particular. It's just that she's so tired of people always _leaving_. “Okay, fine, so I might be a _little bit_ of a mess.”

“You think?” Ben asks teasingly, raising an eyebrow.

“Shut up,” Rey snaps, but she’s fighting back a smile.

“Here,” Ben says as he reaches into his back pocket, pulling out a packet of tissues and handing them to her.

“Thanks,” she mumbles.

“I always have lots of tissues on me if you ever need them. Having allergies and being a flower delivery person can be a bit of an unfortunate combination at times.”

Rey wipes away her tears and sniffles again.

“Why are you a flower delivery person if you have allergies?”

“Because I love flowers. And any kind of plant, honestly,” he explains, “I um...I went to boarding school growing up and I was pretty lonely there, my family didn’t really keep in touch with me and I didn’t have friends, but there was this little garden plot outside the dorms, and I got super into growing plants. It sounds stupid, but they became like my friends, in a way. And part of the reason I got sent to boarding school is because I had a lot of, well...destructive tendencies when I was younger, and I really used to think I was only capable of destroying things, but learning how to garden made me realize I’m capable of making things grow, of making things blossom and come alive, and I’ve been in love with it ever since.”

“That doesn’t sound stupid at all,” Rey reassures him, “I know what it’s like to only have plants as your friends. I grew up in Jakku, Arizona and not much grew there, but I loved cactuses and desert marigolds and succulents, anything that managed to grow in the harsh desert environment. It made me feel like if they could survive Jakku, so could I. Plants were the one constant in my life as I got bounced around to different foster homes, and I felt like they were my only friends. So I totally get it.” Rey pauses for a long moment, staring at the floor. “I’ve never told that to anyone before,” she says quietly. 

And it’s true, she usually avoids talking about her childhood at all costs. But there’s something about this flower delivery boy who inexplicably seems to care about her feelings and listens to her and gives her tissues to wipe away her tears, with those amber eyes filled with warmth and concern, that somehow makes her feel safe sharing all these things.

It is as this thought is running through her mind that she realizes Ben has gingerly placed his hand on top of hers.

She looks up at him hesitantly, and he holds her gaze for a long moment. And then, too soon, he pulls his hand away and starts picking up the bouquets.

“I should, um, I should get started on these deliveries,” he stammers awkwardly.

“Right,” Rey replies, “The deliveries.” 

“I’ll see you in the morning, though?” Ben asks hesitantly.

“Yes,” Rey says softly, a hint of a smile tugging at her lips, “See you in the morning.”

🌼🌼🌼

At 8 o’clock sharp, she hears the familiar jingle of the door as Ben enters the flower shop. And for some strange reason, she realizes her heart is beating faster at the sight of him. And when he smiles at her, she finds that she forgets how to breathe for the briefest moment. 

“Good morning,” she says, smiling.

“Hi,” Ben replies, and perhaps she’s imagining things, but his cheeks seem to redden the tiniest bit when she smiles at him. “You seem in better spirits today.”

“I’m doing a little better, yeah.”

“I, um,” he starts to say, “So, I was um. You seemed so sad the past few days and I wanted to try to make you feel better and I’m not always great with people but I know about plants and I know plants need sunshine and water, and I was at the store the other day and, well—” he pauses to rummage through the messenger bag slung over his shoulder. He pulls out a glass water bottle with multicolored flowers painted all over it, “I saw this water bottle and I thought of you, because of the flowers. And I know it’s, um, when you’re sad I mean, it can be hard to remember to drink water and it’s important to stay hydrated especially if you’ve been crying. I’m sorry, this probably sounds stupid.”

“Ben. That’s not stupid at all. I don’t think...I don’t think anyone has ever done something so thoughtful for me before,” she says as she walks around the counter and goes to take the water bottle from him. Her fingertips brush against his in the process, and they both freeze in place and hold each other’s gaze. At this moment, she happens to notice that he has very full, soft, pink lips and she finds her eyes are drawn to them.

“Um. Thank you,” she says quietly as she pulls her hand back with the water bottle. 

“You’re welcome,” Ben replies with a warm smile and _God,_ when he smiles at her like _that_ she could just _melt_. 

“Why are you being so nice to me?” Rey asks, an incredulous and confused sort of expression on her face. 

“You just seem like a very nice and thoughtful person, and you deserve to have someone be nice and thoughtful to you, too,” Ben says simply. 

_I don’t know if that’s true,_ she wants to say, but the way he’s looking at her makes her almost start to believe that maybe she _does_ deserve such things.

“Your boyfriend must appreciate you so much. You’re very sweet,” she says with a small smile. 

“Huh?” Ben asks, a quizzical expression crossing his face as he tilts his head slightly.

“I mean, you told me you got dumped by your ex-boyfriend, but, um, surely someone as thoughtful as you has found a new boyfriend by now.”

“I don’t have a boyfriend,” Ben tells her, “Or a girlfriend, for that matter,” he adds, looking at her with a softness in those beautiful warm brown eyes of his.

“Oh, right,” Rey says quietly, feeling her cheeks reddening from the way he’s looking at her. “Well um, anyway, thank you again for the water bottle, it’s very beautiful and it will definitely remind me to drink water.”

“Good,” Ben replies as he reaches forward and gingerly tucks a stray strand of her hair behind her ears. His eyes, soft and warm as ever, slowly scan her face, and then a smile tugs at his lips. “You have freckles,” he says softly, reverently, almost breathlessly, and Rey’s freckled cheeks flush pink as she bites back a smile. 

Just then, the door jingles to signal a customer’s entrance into the shop, and Rey nearly jumps. She clears her throat and Ben takes a step back, his eyes darting to the ground.

“Right then, anyway, the flower deliveries are all ready for you,” Rey says as she scrambles to scoop up the pile of bouquets spread out on the back counter and hands them to Ben. “I will, um, see you tomorrow, then.”

“Right,” Ben replies, nodding, “See you tomorrow.”

🌼🌼🌼

When Ben enters the shop the next morning, Rey is wide awake for once. Maybe it’s because she is actually becoming a morning person. Or maybe it’s because seeing him every morning is quickly becoming the best part of her day.

“You’re here early again,” Rey points out.

Ben frowns. “Do you — do you want me to come back later...?”

Rey shakes her head. “No, I didn’t mean it in a bad way. I meant — I’m glad to see you, Ben.”

The softest smile peeks across his lips and it occurs to her that he is quite handsome, especially when he smiles. And it occurs to her that she _especially_ likes that he’s smiling because of _her._

“I’m glad to see you too, Rey,” he says as he walks up to the counter. “I, um...the reason I came early is actually because I wanted to ask you if you maybe wanted to take a walk with me? I was going to ask you yesterday, it was part of what I was saying about how plants need water and sunlight and I gave you the water bottle, but that person came into the shop before I could ask if you wanted to take a walk around the block with me or something. Because I feel like you could use some sunshine in your life right now.”

  
She feels like she already has sunshine in her life standing right in front of her. But she’s not about to turn down his offer. 

  
He’s looking up at her apprehensively, his hands fidgeting nervously, and she finds his nervousness absolutely adorable. 

“That would be nice,” she says as she steps out from behind the counter. She rests a hand top of his to stop his nervous fidgeting. She smiles at him and then gingerly takes her hand in his. 

He stiffens for a moment, blushing all the way to the tips of his ears, but then he relaxes and gives her hand a gentle squeeze. They walk toward the door hand-in-hand.

Rey gingerly flips the open sign on the door to the reverse side, which says “closed.”

“Hopefully no one comes while we’re gone, but no one’s ever here this early anyway,” Rey tells him. 

She feels him staring at her intently.

“What is it?” she mutters, blushing slightly as she looks down at her sandals.

“You’re just...very pretty, that’s all.”

Now she’s certain her face must be bright red.

“Thank you,” she murmurs, and she feels his thumb swirling gentle circles on the back of her hand. His hand feels just as warm and reassuring as it did the first time she felt it brush against her own.

She finds her eyes trailing from the flowering bushes lining the sidewalk and then upwards to the expanses of green trees overhead.

“Isn’t it beautiful here?” Rey says, awe evident in her voice as she looks up at the sun poking through the canopy of tree leaves overhead. “I just — Growing up in Jakku, I didn’t know there was this much green in all the world. I’ve been here in Naboo for a few years now, but I don’t think I’ll ever get used to it. Even the sun feels different here. It’s warm and pleasant, not scorching and suffocating like it is in the desert.”

“So the sunshine is making you feel better, then?” Ben asks gently, his eyes as warm and soft as ever.

“Yes,” Rey says emphatically, “It is...among other things,” she adds with a sly smile, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. “Can I ask you a question?”

“Sure.”

“What’s your favorite flower?”

“Hmm, that’s a difficult question, because there are so many that I love. But I think white jasmine is my favorite, for sentimental reasons. My dad used to leave one for my mom every morning before he left for work and she used to braid the flowers into her hair, and sometimes I would help her, and it was the highlight of my day. And then when I went to boarding school I missed my mom a lot, so I tried to grow a jasmine flower in my dorm room, which worked about as well as you’d expect a plant to grow in a teenager’s dorm room,” he says with a chuckle, shaking his head slightly, “Anyway, now I have a jasmine plant in my apartment, and I always give my mom a flower when she comes over to visit.”

“How exactly do you braid a flower into someone’s hair?” Rey asks with a quizzical look on her face, “I’m useless with hair styling.”

“Here, I’ll show you,” Ben says softly, plucking a lilac from a large blooming lilac bush. Rey feels herself tense up and her breathing quicken as he leans in and brushes her hair out of her face. She can smell his aftershave and his wintermint breath. 

“So you just sort of braid like you normally would, taking two sections of hair, and you braid the flower into your hair like it’s the third section, if that makes sense?”  
  


She nods, but she actually has no idea what he just said; all she can focus on is how close he is to her and the feeling of his hands in her hair.

“There,” he says finally, “Beautiful,” he adds, his voice soft and reverent. 

“Thank you,” Rey says softly as she looks up to meet his eyes. “Ben?” 

“Yes?”

“I have another question for you.”

“What’s that?”

“Can I kiss you?” she asks breathlessly, her voice almost a whisper. 

“Yes, of course,” he murmurs, leaning down closer to her as she stands up on her tiptoes and takes his face in her hands, placing a soft kiss on his lips, letting her lips linger against his for a long moment as she feels his hand gently run through her hair.

She pulls away and fidgets with the ends of her hair as her eyes dart to the ground bashfully.

“I should, um, I should be getting back to the flower shop, and you should be getting started on your deliveries.” She looks up at him again, “But I hope I can kiss you again sometime soon,” Rey adds with a shy smile, glancing back up at him.

He smiles at her again and _oh,_ it’s everything.

“I would like that very, very much, sweetheart.”

_Sweetheart._ No one’s ever called her anything like that before. It makes her blush. And it scares her a little how much she likes him, how much she likes holding hands with him and kissing him and talking to him and when he calls her sweetheart. But something about the way he looks at her, something about the way she feels so safe and comforted whenever his hand so much as brushes against hers, makes her believe that somehow, maybe, he might be the first one to stay. 

🌼🌼🌼

When Rey is sorting out the flower deliveries the next morning, a big bouquet full of heliotrope flowers and white jasmine catches her eye. And then she notices who it’s addressed to. _Reyanna Johnson_ is written in a beautiful, calligraphic script, and there’s a note attached, written in the same style.

_Dear Rey,_

_I know we only just met, but you have completely lit up my world. Your smile is like June sunshine and you are strong and kind and thoughtful and completely beautiful, and I hope you will let me take you out to dinner tonight and I hope I can kiss you again soon, because I like kissing you very much. You’ve brought so much joy into my life during these past few days, and all I know is I would do anything to keep seeing your beautiful smile every single day. I hope these flowers make you smile, and I hope this note makes you smile, too. I can’t wait to see you in the morning. And I hope you’ll give me the chance to show you that sometimes people do stay. And that you deserve to have someone stay._

_Yours,_

_Ben Solo_

As soon as she’s done reading the note, she hears the familiar jingle of the door as Ben opens it. Her face lights up when she sees him, and she realizes she’s crying again, just like the day they met — but today she’s crying for entirely different reasons.

She sets the flowers down and all but runs to him. 

“Ben,” she murmurs, standing up on her tiptoes, taking his face in her hands and kissing him deeply. He pulls her in closer to him by her waist, his other hand gently running through her hair. 

He breaks the kiss for a moment and his warm brown eyes scan her face.

“So is that — is that a yes to dinner, then?” he asks, a hint of apprehension in his tone.

Rey grins.

“A thousand times yes, Ben Solo.”

  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Come say hi to me on [Twitter](http://twitter.com/darthswift13)!


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